It's Fall, my favorite time of year -- when, if we are lucky, the rains depart and there are beautiful crisp days signalling a time when leaves in russets and rust leave their treetop homes at MOSP and remind us of season's change.

All of Berry's questions answered in one sentence. A busy day here.

My top, arm warmers and war paint tattoo are all part of a great new group gift from PARADISIS.

It has been "a day". Good, but very busy and stressful. So what I really need is a BIG cup of coffee -- decaf of course.

Just out from {what next} the most darling coffee cart imaginable. Packed full of details and bursting with lovely Fall colors, you can find it at the main store. It is half off for VIP members for another day or so.

The cart dispenses a HUGE selection of warming drinkables. Currently parked outside the gym in the full sim city, it is bound to be a big hit with visitors. We all know that some warming liquid is just what's needed after all that sweating.

See this post for outfit notes. I changed to 1Hundred's yoga pants as it is COLD out here!

The sim was full as the meeting began. I was there first (well no surprise ) but the count was already a dozen as we rounded the 11 o'clock mark. People WANTED to be there. Whether to report a historical event or simply to learn some things -- they were determined to be present.

Before the meeting actually started, someone gave a long (unrecognized by the chair) statement telling us to go home and read the TOS, that everything was actually alright. Well I am guessing most of the folks in the room HAD read the TOS and that is why they were in attendance.

The complete TOS wording lined the walls of the amphitheater with the "offending" (so sayeth the moderator) text in pink. Someone was smoking right behind me. A couple of facelight offenders and one pair of blinging shoes were in evidence. It was SL.

The meeting was run in and orderly manner with the moderator stating that the purpose of the meeting was not to argue whether the TOS is a problem, but for those who believe it is to decide what actions to take. The chair recognized first Toysoldier who while not the first to post on the matter, started the longest and possibly the most read thread on the Merchant Forum.

Toysoldier mentioned -- as he has on the forum thread -- that SL often only corrects an issue when the public pressure becomes too great to ignore. He believes it is important for Linden Lab to see a large and growing voice letting The Lab know it is is important to rethink the TOS. He has a survey online for SL merchants and other content creators, those that are affected by this the most (or at least the first to be concerned).

Many people have already completed the survey, and as a content creator you are of course invited to be heard. No names are taken. This is completely anonymous. The question most pertinent to this meeting is one that asks , "Regarding the TOS Issue, what do you think should be Linden Lab's next step? " 72 percent of the content creators answering so far believe that The Lab should formally and public acknowledge that the wording was wrong and either revise the wording with limited intent (41%) or restore the old wording (31%).

Tali Rosca urged creators to contact resource sites that we as SL creators use and ask them to review SL's TOS and it compatibility with their licenses. If other sites beside CG Textures and Renderosity jump on the SL banning bandwagon, content creators can show Linden Lab that our worries are founded and that there is an actual legal problem.

Aztral Aeon urged everyone to spread the world. He has been instrumental in that regard and will happily send you a notecard about what you can do to help.

Trinity Yazimoto felt that the focus on the TOS should be the section that concerns the rights of the creators [2.3] and not the section that deals with uploading from external websites.

Crap Mariner, a writer, stated that the TOS potentially puts exclusive publishing deals at risk; he has destroyed all notecards, textures and objects that contain his original stories. He urged all writers of original work to carefully consider how best to protect the future value of their creations. He suggested that those who host writing workshops and open-mike events alert their participants to potential risks.

Toysoldier added that one way to get formally recognized by Linden Lab is for creators to file a support ticket. Being respectful in your content of the filed ticket is certainly important, but explain how this TOS impacts you. By filing a support ticket, it gets formally tracked in LL's internal systems and stats. It also formally records your disagreement to the TOS section 2.3.

Sinalein said she was uncomfortable with suggestions that we should not be alarmed. People have told her that every online site where she posts her art has similar TOS. She has read them and does not see anything as alarming as the LL TOS statement. She is an artist and a gallery owner and now feels uncomfortable inviting artists to show their work. She had been preparing to help two RL artists come to SL and show their work. That will no longer be happening.

She also thought it was important for Linden Lab to understand that for many creators, SL is not a game. For those that are handicapped or otherwise unable to work in regular jobs, it is their livelihood. Many people have told her that Second Life has saved them from suicide or complete isolation as this is their only form of social contact, and for many the only way to have a creative and meaningful life.

The formal meeting ended at the stated hour mark. Many people stayed to talk. A group is being formed to continue the discussion and hopefully find a cohesive way to move forward. IM Kylie Sabra if you would like an invitation to the upcoming (and unnamed at this point) group.

The Dean Door Shelf in a huge variety of door patterns can be found at Cheeky Pea. I especially love the school photo which happily fits with the theme of Op Ed Sunday. You can change the time on the clock by changing the number in the description field to your GMT offset.

I am loving this hair from eXxEsS! SYRA is long and sleek with a few wayward tendrils in back. It is also weighted exceptionally well, something difficult to find in long hair. Best with system tops that hug your back, it is a great addition to your hair collection.

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Memories are wondrous things. They can comfort us in time of grief. They can be our friends in times of loneliness. Days fade into nights and calendar pages turn, but anamnesis* continues.

Whatever their mistakes of the summer, Linden Lab has given us the platform to make our own world, to grow and stretch our creative muscles in ways we never believed we could. And if that world ends tomorrow, next week, or next year -- I have a bountiful collection of happy times stored away in the keepsake box of these pages.

We may never know the reasoning behind the August changes in Linden Lab's TOS. The Powers That Be might just discover their error; that when a population is pushed too far it reacts. It may give up and leave, or stay and fight. With any of those choices, the people are no longer under the control of the leaders.

* I am guessing I got you with that word, OR you are a much better Scrabble player than I.

anamnesis
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: ability to hold in the mindIn philosophy

My mother was an avid reader. She never made it beyond high school, but she kept a pencil and paper by her side and would later look up mystery words she found as she wandered through the pages of her personal escape. We didn't get along all that well, my mom and I; still, there are good memories.

Just out, a super cute and sexy Music Girl BARGAIN outfit from PARADISIS.

And what music girl doesn't love books? A new cloud shelf awaits you at Sway's. An empty shelf is included in the almost free land impact duo pack -- just in case CDs are more your style. Add your own photo. Available in blue also.

PRETENSE'S poses with flowers can be found at My Attic while September lasts.

It is going to be a fun month for The Challenge designers with the theme of TRANSPORTATION. This Art Nouveau Newspaper Stand is one of two releases from 22769 ~ [bauwerk]. SOOOOO cute! I just love it. Happily I had the perfect place up in the Full Sim City -- right across the street from some vintage shops. The stand features a variety of animations in the worker's chair; the magazines are fun to read and nicely made. If you have a city build, you definitely need one of these. And if not, well it makes a great now and then photo prop.

Don't forget The Challenge starts the LAST day of the month.

My sweater and shirt set (I call this guy Twister Boy in my inventory but it's just me in a shape I used for filming) is one of several releases for the guys from Ducknipple. A huge variety of color options await you, fellows. Look for Keffer.

Find the "Why" dress from AD Creations at The Couturier's Docks -- which happens to be the location of my photos shoot. It has changed since I last visited. Cool ice forms a backdrop for shops dressed in the absence of color with artwork, a Paradise Circus by ???
"Buffy: is all I can make out via the very arty font.

Well I do that a lot these days and Pearl, it seems is in thinking mode too. Who knew my kitty would climb up on the hale bale to join me in my ponderings? Not I.

New out from Sway's a fun tent lean-to with lanterns and hay bale seating (singles and couples). It coordinates nicely with the outdoor dining area.

Kitty not included :D.

Two new releases in the avatar enhancement category are Patricia from MINA Hair (colors by hud) for My Attic, a casual updo great for all sorts of stylings and the Elie top (colors by hud) from Ducknipple.

Click the photo for a high-rez version.

And hereare my Sunday musings.

It's Tuesday as I write this. When I am feeling philosophical, it is the time to write.

Today is a good day. The best in over a week and last night after staying up until 2 AM creating, I had really REALLY good dreams. This tells me how very much creativity is a part of my life; just as important as food -- not quite up there with air.

I did some exploring yesterday, bored as I was with little to do. I ventured over to a prominent SL type world to look around. It was about two years behind SL in style and I could only teleport to one of eight places I tried.

Then, reading the very long forum post in Merchants I found a new world -- one I didn't even know existed. Rebeca Bashley is a citizen, so art is represented.

I spent some time there in the afternoon, learning how to move, changing my default avatar a bit, reading wikis and tutorials. In the early morning hours (two to be exact) I managed to upload an already made mesh chair, get a texture on it (not so easy) AND a normal map. It looks great although a friend of mine said I need a cushion for sure; he has very little RL padding in that area so is particularly notefull of comfortable seating.

It is good to be building and learning again. Skills can easily be forgotten (Blender is FILLED with shortcut keys that you really need to memorize and use). So feeling much more centered, I am moving along.

I took a lot of photos here this morning but this was the winner. The steamily cute purse hales from Bliensen + MaiTai for this event. The boots -- not exactly in the theme of the venue but color matching anyway, can be found at Genre this month; also Bliensen + MaiTai.

My Miette dress which didn't exactly make it into this shot is from Senzafine and can be found both at the main shop and here at CS.

Now, honestly I would have saved this photo for my Sunday post (text mostly written) but TODAY is the day. This rocker is a Fifty Linden Friday special from {what next}. Go there, get it; wonderful -- with tons of choices and great animations!

Now this post brought back lots of memories. First I went to look for this shot in September (natch) but missed the folder and ended up in 2012. My how things change in a year - LOL. I am also sitting out front of my Bayou Shack and that brings back memories of New Toulouse which I so loved.

AND one of my first purchases (surely not really the first but I do remember it well) was a rocker with knitting basket from {what next}. I still have it in my inventory. The knitting basket is inside the shack here and I may just bring it out front. Knitting on the porch in the late Autumn afternoon -- works for me.

There are various styles of this rocker but the one I picked has a saying about Autumn on the pillow and is in rustic wood. Couldn't be better.

And with that, I'll get back to rocking and listening to the frogs. Pearl, my kitty is two weeks old today. Happy day, Pearl!

Moving back in time, this vintage (peddle pushers are the theme here) outfit from SLXfeatures a whole set of goodies including jewelry (shown) as well as black pumps and matching bag. I am especially fond of the tied top. And good news, the micro shirt comes with a hud that lets you choose from five colors including black and white.

What's to say. Today's Monday Meme asks us to create a surreal photo. Inspired by the new snowy tree area at MOSP LEA7, I donned ice skates and a terrifically surreal outfit from AD Creations. Dark gray skies lend a lonely air to my "painting".

The September cycle of La boutique-The Liaison collaborative opens on the 15th according to my blogger group, which is "hey, today!". Many are pounding on the virtual doors -- at least in their minds -- waiting to get in.

Two new releases in so many, many colors will be out for BAIASTICE. The Luis Sleeveless Shirt comes in two styles -- all one tone (shown here) as well as a few color combos.

The Cigarette Trousers come in twelve colors, everything from wardrobe basics to gorgeous jewel tones. I love these pants!!!!! Sure to be a Fall and winter go to item for me.

My bracelets are from Eclectica. While they are not new, they work perfectly with my new glasses which ARE new. A host of vintage glasses with color and pattern change metals as well as glass opacity options are out for your buying pleasure. Shown here is the "old round spectacles" style, but there are many more including some 50s and 60s shapes you may or may not remember depending on your age *wink*.

It's Sunday so here is my Op Ed addition -- it's a short one this week.

Now that I am no longer spending four or more hours a day in Blender, I have options. Well I always had options; I didn't HAVE to be in Blender all that time. I did enjoy it though and hope to visit mesh making again. Meanwhile it is interesting to note in that far-distance viewing mode how my virtual life has changed since last week's unscheduled informative post.

I am helping out more in the blogger group, chatting more with bloggers I don't know at all -- taking longer with my photo shoots -- sometimes. All good. I even continued work on my next machinima project. It is WAY in pre-production -- meaning I am making movies that can go on screens and be filmed INSIDE the final movie (oh my!).

Today (Friday) I ventured over to Smokey Hills which Lani enjoyed so much. I was thinking of breaking out a wearable bike from {what next}, but in my neatness I had packed them away. So, I'll need to come a bit more prepared next time. There are many long serpentine roads here on which to hone my biking skills. The beach is beautiful, rugged and windy.

All in all I am doing pretty well at the Day Five-Point-Five mark. I am hoping though that we can go back in time and retrieve our content creator rights. Some designers have stopped producing for now, others have packed up and exited the building. I love my STUFF! I am guessing you do too. So let's keep our fingers crossed that PR spins translate into actual changes -- for the good of us all.

While there may have been a bigger Chic at Phil's Place day for page views, I can't remember it. So thank you to all that clicked in and viewed on Saturday til 5.

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It's been a tough week for me and I thank you all for hanging in there, reading my musings and society based posts along with viewing the pretty pictures. I pretty much am back to normal and things will move on accordingly. I am still dismayed and upset and sometimes simply mad at the events of the last couple of weeks, but I am one to move on and will in whatever form that takes.

My best wishes go out to all the content creators who have closed up shop, gone on hiatus, moved to more friendly platforms and even given up. We all make our choices and hopefully do what is best for ourselves and our loved ones.

Neutrals and crimson, a perfect match. Add some new trees from LAQ Decor (animated and three seasons in one pack) and some lovely Victorian-esce outdoor furnishes and I am dreaming of winter.

Now I know winter isn't here yet; I actually just changed my ground level to shades of Fall. Pampas grass is now sans plumes, rust and golden leaves blow gently -- wind or no. It is really lovely in the valley. [Later note: you can see one of the Fall trees in my previous post]

I found these beautiful trees (well Lani did in fact discover them) when taking a RL friend on a tour of Smokey Hills. Happily there are three versions including this bare style which is my favorite and will soon appear in the SNOW area at LEA7.

The very pretty settee and the post lamp are new releases from Atelier Visconti @ Designer Warehouse . There are four versions of lamps ranging in land impact from 1 to 6. The Noir Bench of course coordinates with the Noir Street Lanterns and is packed full of animations (58 in all including couples versions). It weighs in at an amazing 2 and has lovely wood textures. If you live in one of the magical Victorian or Steampunk areas -- or even have your own parcel with that theme -- these are wonderful additions. I can envision carolers singing happily nearby. OK; too many months in the future again.

My dress is a new release from Senzafine for We Love Roleplay. The "Amarthiel" Elvish Gown comes in three colors. Demos are available at the venue shop.

My hair happily arrived as I was getting dressed (OK I was really turning pampas from flowers to bushes and HOPING some new appropriate hair would appear). This is DOLIA from eXxEsS. There are two thin low ponytails in back and lots of messy hair falling out in front. I just can't help wondering what this wench has been doing *wink*. A very cute and unusual hairstyle, it comes in tons of colors with NEW HUDS WITH SWATCHES (so love those).

Did you pick up one of the super cute Firestorm Anniversary Kitties? Are they getting frisky now that they are close to full grown? Well good news! Trompe Loeil has some kitty proofing and patio decor items out for The Neighborhood (Saturday only).

Deep patio pavers (work on hilly ground) come with either gravel accents or grass; sizes 5 x 5 with some trim and walkway accents at 3 x 5. The fencing comes in three varieties of color (this is the dark version) and two LOD options. I chose the lower one here as I really don't care what the far away neighbors see and there aren't many anyway *wink*. Nice to have a choice though.

All are mod so you can adjust as needed and there is a gate that opens should you need one. The kitties are SMART so no gate for them!

Please note that you don't really need to be kitty proofing to use this set! Well you KNEW that, didn't you?

For Fifty Linden Friday - this great hutch in a choice of two color packs (naturals and colors -red, white and blue). Three land impact, they are perfect for vintage and shabby chic abodes. Find them at Second Spaces.

Releasing tomorrow, this super cute short style from EMO-tions; look for BROOKLYN.

*Fun new outdoor dining set from Sway's:
Picnic Tent with string lights (scripted), Hay seat with 12 single animations and Hay table with Cookies, Hot Chocolate with marshmallows and a vase with marguerites.

I did a portion of the Renaissance Hunt the other day. Here are a couple of my finds, a gorgeous if primmy new wagon for the Gypsy camp and some Robin Hood attire.

The Disasterous Beauty~ Renny Gypsy Wagon Scene comes with a complete forest of magical violet trees and many other extras; I pared down a bit to save on prims. 138 complete with furnishingss and decor, that's the number. My outfit is from Tamiron Forge and there is one for the gents too.

You know how serendipity it; it sneaks up on you when you aren't looking. I went over to see what might be going on in the forums Saturday eve and found a post about a new role play area that spanned three sims. Now I have always believed that a large role play area offered more realism than its smaller counterpart and who knew what photo ops might be available, so off I went.

Well "I" as Chic didn't go, Lani did. Poor Lani hasn't been out in for-e-ver and I thought she might enjoy an outing. And indeed she did.

The area is called Smokey Hills and is patterned after Maine in the United States. The typist visited Maine once a few years ago and enjoyed it. She could live there -- well maybe more when she was younger and hardier as it is not a wintertime retreat for those who love creature comforts. It is beautiful however.

I have a ton of good things to say about these sims. You can pretty much wrap it up in my title though, it is really really real. Lots of attention to detail with modern builds that don't have you wondering when the sim might think about upgrading *wink*. Well you know how that is some places.

Three sims with long winding roads that never actually "end". The designer was extremely clever and the roads lead off sim in curves giving you the feeling that they DO lead somewhere. Giant hills surround the peaceful valley which is rich in forestry and natural resources. It is very much a "real" town and even includes a fire watch tower.

Reading the code of conduct was a relief. I honestly love role play sims but even as a retired actress (OK it was a VERY little movie) I have never ventured into that SL area simply because there was always violence involved. That and meters with all you ever wanted to know about the person listed in floating text. Neither worked for me. Happily that is not part of this project. So Lani in her wisdom joined the group and we'll see how it goes.

The sim seems to be open to the public at large. Of course respect the role play. It is only unofficially open at the moment but the builds seem to be pretty much complete.

The Periodic Table wall art is available from Cheeky Pea at the Mens Dept. You can also purchase the whole group of single letters.

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And here is the rest of the story. See this post for the beginning if you missed it.

As the typist I have spent a good part of my life being true to my beliefs. Having made many decisions based on keeping my personal authenticity intact, it wasn't difficult to come to the conclusion that a personal building hiatus is called for. The changes in the Terms of Service in August were undoubtedly not aimed at me; still, the possible consequences are vast.

I have the luxury of being able to follow my own moral compass with few consequences. I am not trying to put the kids through college or pay the mortgage. I am simply trying to live in a world that I believe in.

In the final analysis this is the platform of Linden Lab. They make the rules; we can choose to follow or not, stay or go.

So it is early and my titling abilities seem to be lax today. Dots do abound however, both on the new studded dress from Ducknipple, Nickster, with color change hud of course and on my new motel sign -- as lightbulbs.

The sign featured beautiful meshwork by Seven Emporium; you can find it at FaMESHed. There are poses included in the sign, but the real stars are the shading and texturing. If you have no place for your own, feel free to drop by the alleyway and use mine.

My super sleek ponytail is a new release from eXxEsS, CIRI which happily comes with color change huds to help keep your inventory number manageable.

If you missed all the hubbub last month, Linden Lab changed the Terms of Service mid August (which most of you I bet didn't read and put a check in the box and clicked through) to include the provision that The Labs have all rights (except your copyright) to work uploaded to Second Life. Now, they pretty much had that from the beginning -- or at least when I faithfully read the Terms of Service when joining. But before the wording included "for the distribution of resources" or something like that meaning so that they could run SL as it was designed. Now the rights are much much broader and very inclusive. Your first born child is still safe unless born after August 15th but your content may not be.

There was a lot of conversation on the boards about this, some folks quit SL etc.

Today there was a post on the Building and Texturing Forums that CG Textures, a well-known and well used stock texture site announced that it would no longer be legal to upload any of their textures or derivatives (no matter that they are vastly changed or even uploaded within the 3D modeling process making them pretty much useless for anything but the one model they go with). Here is a link to their post.

This puts a big dent in the textures to start from library. We can still use creative commons (attrib only) textures and indeed I spent about an hour downloading "replacement" stock to work from. Items using CG Textures stock as a starting point uploaded before September 6 are still legal -- and of course it is up to you if want to BE legal or simply ignore.

I do a lot of things in Second Life. If I couldn't build any longer, I still have plenty to do. But what if 30 percent of the content creators decide that they don't like Linden Labs ability to use their work in any and every way that they might want to? (I am not copying any TOS text in here as I am guessing there is a "you may only link to this page" statement somewhere on it) so please feel free to peruse the forum posts and read the TOS areas that were changed. Specifically section 2.3 but there are some others that have changed greatly and have impact. Here is a Google doc with a comparison (hopefully correct).

So if all this passed you by, it might be time to do a bit of research and see where your comfort level lies. If some of my best builds ended up at a third party site for sale with no credit or money going to me, I would not be happy about it. Presumably only items uploaded AFTER we agreed to the terms of service would be available in that all inclusive rights category. And honestly MY stuff is most likely not going to be their first choice :D, but YOURS might.

Going off to think. Like to have faith in people. Find that often I shouldn't have *wink*.

It is Wednesday night as I type this. No point in telling a lie. With way too many things to do I blog when I can and hit that SCHEDULE button. This seems like a great post for Sunday as while there are plenty of pictures there is a bit of op ed in here too.

I think of myself as a niche designer. When I have to fill in a Google doc form with "what the heck do you make?" I enter "prefabs, surrounds and niche items". And really, that's the truth. Much of my building is spurred by need. If I can find something I want ready-made, I am happy to pay for it. Oftentimes I seem to want something that simply isn't out there.

Niche is one thing. Quirky is another. (Insert smile here.)

When Corvus Szpiegel asked if I might want to blog some (actually I forgot the words, but "odd" was the general idea) items, I of course said yes. I love the unexpected. Well even I was surprised. This is a back brace. There is also a cane. Put them together and you have an injured person. Oh my! Who would have thought? Well Corvus -- obviously. The back brace is beautifully made; the cane has both color choices and a super (SUPER) convincing animation of a limping person. Yes, the wheels did start turning and I am sure this will make it into a film someday -- maybe the next as I have an idea.

The snakeskin really isn't all that appropriate for this styling (can we call a back brace and cane a styling? Well maybe. ) but it has endless possibilities and is free if you can find it as part of a big pack of goodies including circus wagon on the Twisted Hunt. The shop?[hate this].

Another new release in that quirky category are these Sneaking Boots from CARGO. So fun and definitely well made!

So hats off to the folks whose imaginations have no bounds. It is a great thing to see.

Fall is definitely in the air in my part of the corporeal world. Autumn is actually my favorite season but maybe not at the beginning of September. The weather fairies have been a bit topsy turvy these last few years; uncommon temps have become the norm.

With it getting cooler for many of us, a jacket will definitely be called for. This new one from Ducknipple comes as a plain black jacket as well as with a color by hud tank (not shown). Look for the Aly Jacket.

My hair is also new and releases today. This is Alisha which has a color change headband as well as two similar styles in one (fluffy and wet). Head over to the EMO-tions store for this.

The theme for The Challenge this month is "Teenage Years". I was a brownie and a girl scout. We didn't actually camp out all that much, we mostly did crafty things --- ah, see I DID do crafts, I had just forgotten how long ago! This is a lovely set from 22769 ~ [bauwerk]. The mesh is sleek and well made and both tents and stools include animation choices. There is a option of one or two people poses for the tents.

Sami is the star today with a great find from Sassy on the Rock Attitude Hunt 3. Leggings are not part of the prize. Look for a blue and red present type box.

And what's a star without a photo studio? The camera equipment and backdrop as well as the hand held camera are all from the SAAL Body Inc store from gatchas at The 24 event. There is a story here. I tried my luck at the beginning of the event but the database wasn't giving out any goodies. Very kindly the owner sent the whole set. A happy gal I have added them to the "advertising agency" area in the full sim city build here. So feel free to come by and get a taste of fame. Coffee table with books from 22769 ~ [bauwerk].

The photo props are no longer available at The 24 of course, but you might want to check the SAAL store as many of the 24 folks moved their gatcha items to there shops after the end of the event.

We have already established that I am not a gatcha kinda gal. I may be in the minority though as it is easy to see how popular the events can be. With that being said, I LOVE many of the items that are offered, just not the no copy and gambling aspects. Well, that's me.

For those few of you that might want to cut down on thechance part of the equation, you can head over to Juicy where there are carts set up with gatcha items for sale -- clearly part of the gatcha experience. From the looks of things, some are definitely from this round of the Arcade and others from previous rounds. Prices seem to range from less than a play at the venue to way more than a play for the rares. Many appear to be the equivalent of a play. One stand's things seem to be very high overall, others a bargain. So shopping around might be wise.

I know that for many of you, it is the thrill of winning that is just as important as the item won. But for some of us, this might be a good way to pick up what we want and keep the gatcha folks ready with dinero for the next rounds. I will definitely venture back after I have a clearer picture of what some of these items are :D.

I have already shown you lots of great Arcade items for this round. Here are my favorites from Trompe Loeil. There are so many styles of lighting it is thrilling. I am a fan of light fixtures as I had a lighting store long ago (yes, a very checkered RL past :D). These are superb and definitely something I will enjoy having around.

Black on black and very tiny, this is Achoo who is less than a day old. He is the new "store cat" at a group shop I am in. It was Firestorm's 3rd Anniversary yesterday. This live forever, spayed (actually "neutered" is the correct term in his case) and dieting kitty (no food needed) is a present from KittyCatS to all the Firestorm fans. And even if you don't use Firestorm as your primary viewer, you can pick up your own kitty (one per avatar) anytime this week. See the listing of gift vendors here.

There is a post coming up tomorrow with me in this outfit. I bumped the "gatcha" post in favor of the kitty, what can I say? I love this photo. It was so much fun to do!

As if I didn't have enough to do, I consented to be part of a new tiny shop with a couple of friends. They of course have stuff made and I have one thing sitting on my building pad, so I doubt I will be a big contributor, but it is fun anyway. The shop will be called "Girls with Hammers" and we made this photo to fill in a big empty wall of the shop -- there just isn't much there yet. Anyway, that's the story and I will rewrite a bit of text in the upcoming post so not to be too confusing.

There is also a post coming up about Sami's great and FREE dress. So stay tuned. And now I need to get back to sawing and nailing.

My outfit is of course the free overalls from COCO's group gift wall. Xia is wearing the doll version which she rarely changes out of. Not much of a fashionista now that she is a doll.

I had a notice in my email inbox this morning stating that content I had created had been removed from my inventory and to review the Intellectual Property Policy; my account could be suspended or terminated.

Now "I" am the one often reminding folks (mostly on machinima boards) about copyrights and such so for me to get this notice seemed a bit bizarre. As it turned out the item in question was an animation that I picked up on a hunt a couple of years ago (not really sure about the timeline, but not recently).

I am not upset that something from my inventory disappeared over DMCA claims, but the letter was SO off base. Folks that don't know what is actually going on are most likely in a panic. I wrote back to the Intellectual Property Team (the note didn't say "don't reply") asking them to review what they had just sent out to most likely a thousand or so folks. It was a hunt item after all. I doubt anyone will read it.

Meanwhile if you got one of these notes, it is actually not YOUR at fault. I so hate being yelled at for something I didn't do.

Later: I guess I should add that while I can see that someone who has an inventory full of stolen goods could very well be considered for suspension, this particular item was from a well known and high profile dance store that you would all recognize. It isn't like I picked it up at a garage sale for $5. LOL. We can only do what we can do.

It would be SO much better and very little work to reword the notes going out to say something like "we found some possible stolen goods in your inventory and have removed them while we investigate. Please shop carefully" with a link to the IPP page.

I have been using Windlight since it first came on the scene -- looking up -- the wiki says 2009, but my video (see below) says 2008.

When taking a closeup snapshot for a profile picture, which windlight preset do you use most often?

Which windlight presets do you use for full body portraits?

If you do landscape photography, which windlights do you use for that most often?

I don't make distinctions between types of photography. For me it is all about the feel of the shot and what I am trying to portray. I have no starting point except perhaps that I use the MOSP (LEA7) standard lighting most often. Love those gray clouds.

Do you have any tricks or tips that you could share for using windlight effectively?

If you are on the Linden viewer -- Windlight is HARD. Firestorm's quick preferences pane lets you cycle through ALL your Windlight settings, both your own and those that come with the viewer. If I don't have a specific idea about what I want, I simply keep hitting that "next" button until something says, "aahhhh" and from there I tweak for shadows and gamma and sometimes "haze".

Have you created any windlights that you would be willing to share with us?

Many of you already have my Windlight settings. Anything in your viewer (Firestorm, Singularity and who knows what other TPVs) marked "Places" are mine from long ago when I was publishing individual windlight settings with most every post. If you are using a viewer that doesn't have them included, you can download them here. Then figure out where your windlight settings are saved and paste them into that folder. Some helpful tips can be found here.

I will say that I have a VERY OLD video with an embarrassing voice over that talks about Windlight and shadows. If you want a laugh, you can find it here. The information is still good. Well, no guarantees on that but the IDEA about low on the horizon is important *wink*. That was actually my THIRD machinima of all time, so keep that in mind *wink*.

Later: I guess I should add that should any of you want those gray clouds and strong shadows you see on these pages, you can zip over to LEA7 and use the region default setting, save as a new Windlight and you will have it :D.

The Medieval Fantasy Hunt X started the other evening. I was out and about just before the bells tolled. If this is your genre you will not want to miss it. With SLURLs, hints and prize photos on the blog your hunting will be as you like it -- a good thing. You are looking for a white horse statue. It may be a unicorn; you get the idea.

I don't have time to do the complete hunt, but I was not going to miss getting a new and stellar location for LEA7. I spied it in the hunt prizes and it looked gorgeous. A neighboring photo caught my eye and went searching for this outfit too. We want to be thematically attired for our blog posts, of course! This is the prize from Feyline Fashions #27. There is a coordinating outfit for guys in the gift pack. A complete wearable bow and arrow set as well as leg wrap with hunting knife is included. There are boots too and a cloak.

And here is the fabulous gift from number 29,*Sweet Revolutions*~ Sweetgwendoline Bailey.
I wasso happy to find this. Absolutely gorgeous with beautiful textures, super realistic trees and a ancient graveyard (Halloween is coming), it is an excellent addition to MOSP. The grassy pad comes with the build and is made to fit on a 1024 plot if I remember correctly. I enlarged it to the 64 x 64 size needed for my space and copied a tree over to fill in a bit. It is just lovely.

While you are looking for the church, there is another nice prize from the same shop as well as these very pretty lanterns from stop number #64 *Mederia* . There are many shops in an outdoor area, so keep your eyes open for three gifts here (maybe more).

There is also a shop in the Twisted Hunt at that location. I didn't look for that prize but it was obvious there was one there "somewhere". You'll see when you arrive.

On another note, my by-accident modeling gig has come to a close. It was an interesting experience and I came away with some new duds as well as some new poses. The ones featured here are from Ndispose.